The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has criticized labor officials for not thoroughly investigating allegations of job manipulation at Foxconn's iPhone assembly plant in India. The watchdog has directed federal and Tamil Nadu state officials to reassess Foxconn's hiring practices after reports emerged that married women were excluded from assembly jobs, and the ban was eased during peak production periods. The NHRC's order comes as Foxconn and Apple aim to expand manufacturing in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision to boost electronics manufacturing in India.
According to a Reuters report, labor officials visited the Foxconn plant in July but did not make their findings public. Documents it reviewed showed Tamil Nadu labor officials told the NHRC that 6.7 percent of the 33,360 women employed at the factory were married, without specifying whether they worked on the assembly line. Officials said the hiring of women workers from six districts made it clear that “the company has hired a large number of women workers without any discrimination”. The NHRC, however, noted that officials did not address the fundamental issue of discrimination against married women.
The NHRC said labor officials had “filed their reports in a casual/casual manner” and failed to check Foxconn's recruitment documents. The Commission stressed that “currently (a) having a certain number of women employees (a) does not answer the question of whether the company actually discriminated against married women at the time of recruitment”, and stressed that the officials “appeared to be silent”. in this regard”.
The commission has ordered a “full inquiry” within four weeks, reflecting similar powers to a civil court to recommend remedial measures including compensation. Neither state nor federal labor departments responded to requests for comment on the NHRC's assessment. The NHRC's intervention coincides with the government's assertion that India's Equal Remuneration Act prohibits discrimination in recruitment on the basis of sex.
(with input from Reuters)